The competitively priced Toshiba Regza 42XV540U ($1,599.99 list) features useful touches including a solid selection of HD-compatible video inputs and a swivel base. Additionally, this LCD HDTV is one of a handful that I've tested that deliver practically perfect picture detail with HD sources. But the 42XV540U is relatively "contrast challenged" when compared with the competition, so it's not the best choice for dimly lit environments.

Ever-thinning bezels are one HDTV design trend that helps larger screens to fit into smaller spaces. The 42XV540U's bezel measures only 1.4-inches wide and features a two-tone color scheme, with a glossy black finish bordered by a strip of matte trim that tapers in toward the front of the panel. The trim also frames the TV's thin "SoundStrip" stereo speaker bar that's located beneath the set's lower bezel. The set sits on a glossy swivel table stand (minor assembly required) that provides 30 degrees of total swivel action (15 degrees to either side). The TV weighs 48.4 pounds, and with the stand attached it measures 27.3 by 39.8 by 12.1 inches (HWD). Without the stand, the height and depth are 25.5 inches and 3.7 inches, respectively.

The wide, baton-style remote features a fingerhold on its back, which improves your grip while naturally directing your thumb to its primary controls. I appreciate the remote's dedicated Picture Mode and Picture Size buttons, which simplify basic video optimization. Codes provided in the manual can be used to program the remote to control additional devices such as disc players, DVRs, and cable/satellite/fiber set-top boxes. The remote's communication performance with the TV was excellent beyond 20 feet and at off-axis angles up to 45 degrees.

Toshiba provides a solid selection of HD-compatible video connections, including four HDMI (one side-mounted), two component video inputs, VGA, and an RF input that feeds the set's combo analog/digital/cable tuner. The HDMI ports are compatible with the latest HDMI features, including CEC (consumer electronic control), which enables compatible connected devices to be controlled (through the HDMI connection) using the TV's remote. In testing, this feature seemed to work best with other Toshiba-branded devices such as the HD-A30 HD DVD player.

The 42-inch antireflective screen (also available in 46- and 52-inch screen sizes) features full 1080p resolution as well as 120-Hz display technology that proved effective in reducing motion blur and judder. Also beneficial to picture detail is the TV's "native" picture size preset, which displays every video pixel with all HD sources along with 480i (standard definition) HDMI input. The TV's HDMI ports also accept 1080p24 video signalsthe native video format of most Blu-ray movies. Component video input tops out at 1080i, and VGA input from a PC is limited to a 1,360-by-768-pixel resolution. You need to use the HDMI ports for full 1080p support.

The TV's "movie" picture preset produces a picture that comes closest to the HD spec's color and detail standards, but there is room for improvement. The TV's green is oversaturated, and this is the worst-case color error: The human eye is most sensitive to green. This problem can be spotted easily in black-and-white material and in scenes containing foliagethough sports fans do seem to appreciate the look of "enhanced" turf. The remaining primary and secondary colors measure close to spec, except for cyan, which is almost as oversaturated as green. The TV's RGB (red, green, and blue) levels were admirably linear (from black to peak bright levels), resulting in reduced color shifts, particularly in dimly lit scenes. This is a significant improvement over the set's smaller sibling, the Regza 32CV510U, which exhibited increasing blue levels in dimly lit scenes.

A year ago, I would have said the 42XV540U's average contrast ratio of 767:1 was excellent. These days, though, the light emitted by new HDTVs when displaying video black continues to decline steadily (improving contrast), and this set's calibrated video black measurement of 0.13 Cd/m2 is two to three times brighter than that of other LCDs, such as the Westinghouse TX-52F480S, Samsung LN52A750, and Mitsubishi LT-52148. Keep in mind that an inky-dark video black is most important in a dimly lit viewing environment where the eye is most sensitive to detail. In a well-lit room, the 42XV540U's bright picture and dark-colored, matte-finish screen deliver ample apparent picture contrast.

On the HQV Benchmark DVD test, the 42XV540U's standard-definition video processing engine delivered a mixed performance. The TV's excellent video noise reduction abilities were tempered by an inability to minimize jagged-edge artifacts in the benchmark's moving bars and classic flag waving scenes. The set also failed all of the benchmark's film and other cadence-detection tests, but my selection of classic DVD movies were quickly detected as being film-based (originally recorded at 24 frames per second) and were rendered quite well. The TV's 120-Hz technology also improved the clarity of film-based videos such as Gladiator (on DVD), which features several panning shots that highlighted the TV's solid video-smoothing abilities while maintaining the look and feel of the film material.

Feeding the 42XV540U high-definition video produced an impressively detailed picture that was also free of distracting artifacts. The TV aced the challenging HD HQV Benchmark, putting it in the rarefied company of other capable 1080p LCDs such as LG's 47LG60 and the Sharp Aquos LC-32GP3U-R. My selection of broadcast HD clips was processed cleanly with no signs of banding (posterization), jaggies, or other common artifacts. A scene from the TV program Art of the Heist that I use to evaluate motion blur exhibited good detail for a 120-Hz LCD, but it still didn't quite match the clarity offered by plasma televisions such as the Panasonic TH-46PZ85U.

The 42XV540U exhibits solid energy efficiency for a 42-inch LCD. Using default picture settings, the TV consumed an average of 195W during operation, resulting in an estimated cost of $3.89 per month based on 5 hours of daily operation at $0.13 kWh (the local average in San Francisco). Standby power consumption measured 0.4W, which when taken together with its default operating consumption rate, should make this set ready for Energy Star's upcoming version 3.0 specification that goes into effect November 2008. Selecting the TV's movie picture preset reduced its average operating consumption by almost half to 107W.

I was surprised that the 42XV540U came nowhere close to matching the excellent picture contrast of its smaller sibling, the 32CV510U. I was equally disappointed by the TV's too-bright greens, which reduce picture accuracy. What this set does quite well is deliver excellent picture detail with HD material. And you get a good selection of HD-compatible video ports and a stylish and functional design in the bargain. The TV's relatively bright depiction of video black makes it a less appealing option for use in a dimly lit environment. The superb, though larger and more expensive LN52A750 ($3,999.99 list) excels in this situation, however.

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